Hybrid technologies for remediation of highly Pb contaminated soil: sewage sludge application and phytoremediation

Abstract

Phytoremediation techniques and stabilization of heavy metals with municipal sewage sludge (SW) in soils are usually studied separately. We aimed to verify the potential of the combined use of phytoextraction method and metal stabilization with SW in the recovery of soil with high Pb content (total = 28,650 mg kg⁻¹ and exchangeable = 1,120 mg kg⁻¹) and to verify the effect of the association of these two techniques on the Pb fractions in the soil (stabilization). We have tested five doses of SW (0; 13.4; 26.7; 53.4; 106.8 Mg ha⁻¹) and three cultivation conditions (uncultivated, black oats and forage turnip). The SW application in soil with a high Pb content favored the nutrition and growth of the plants (shoots and roots) and promoted an increase in the Pb absorption, a desirable combination in phytoextraction. The SW application and the cultivation of plants had a positive effect on the stabilization of Pb in the soil. It was verified decrease of the exchangeable fraction and increase precipitated and adsorbed by inner-sphere at the edges of the kaolinite and gibbsite. The combined use of SW and phytoremediation is very promising and should be tested on soils with moderate levels of heavy metals.

Novelty statement: We believe that the study presents a more comprehensive methodology to assess and to recover soils highly contaminated with heavy metals. Conditions of the high toxicity of heavy metals in the soil compromise the growth of plants and limit the effectiveness of phytoremediation. We aimed to verify the potential of the combined use of phytoextraction and stabilization with sewage sludge in the recovery of soil with a high Pb content and to verify the effect of the association of these two techniques on the Pb fractions in the soil (stabilization). Often, the simple evaluation of the reduction in total Pb contents with phytoremediation is not sufficient to describe the magnitude of soil decontamination. The ideal is also to determine the different forms of Pb (such as: soluble; exchangeable; precipitate; complexed in organic matter; inner-sphere adsorption in Fe and Mn oxides; inner-sphere adsorption in gibbsite and kaolinite; residue) in soil before and after the recovery techniques to access the possible migration to more stable environmental Pb fractions.

Keywords:

• Inner-sphere Pb adsorption
• outer-sphere Pb adsorption
• Pb hyperaccumulator plant
• sequential Pb extraction

Acknowledgment

This work was not supported.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).